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TheNew York Timesbestseller by the acclaimedauthorof START WITH WHY and TOGETHER IS BETTER
Imagine a world where almost everyone wakesup inspired to go to work, feels trusted and valuedduring the day, then returns home feeling fulfilled.This is not a crazy, idealized notion. As Simon Sinek noticed in his travels around theworld, great leaders createenvironments in which people naturallywork together to do remarkable things. Some of theseteams trust each otherso deeply that they would literally put their lives onthe line for each other.
Far more common, unfortunately, are teams that seemdoomed to infighting, fragmentation, and failure, no matter what incentives are offered. But why?
The answer became clear during a conversationwith a Marine Corps general who explained a USMCtradition: Officers eat last. Sinek watched as the most junior Marines atefirst while the most senior Marines took their placeat the back of the line.
What s symbolic in the chowhall is deadly serious on the battlefield: great leaderssacrifice their own comfort even their own survival for the good of those in their care.
This principle has been true since the earliesttribes of hunters and gatherers. It s not a managementtheory; it s biology. Our brains and bodies evolvedto help us find food, shelter, mates, and especiallysafety. We ve always lived in a dangerous world, facing predators and enemies at every turn. Wethrived only when we felt safe among our group.
Our biology hasn t changed in fifty thousandyears, but our environment certainly has. Today sworkplaces tend to be full of cynicism, paranoia, and self-interest. But the best organizations fostertrust and cooperation because their leaders buildwhat Sinek calls a Circle of Safety that separates thesecurity inside the team from the challenges outside.
The Circle of Safety leads to stable, adaptive, confident teams, where everyone feels they belongand all energies are devoted to facing the commonenemy and seizing big opportunities. Leaderswho are willing to eat last are rewarded withdeeply loyal colleagues who will stop at nothing to advance their leader s vision and their organization sinterests. It s amazing how well it works.
As he did inStart with Why, Sinek illustrateshis ideas with fascinating true stories from a widerange of fields.
From the Hardcover edition."
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